Zambia’s government has urged the country’s telecom regulator to continue to push for greater rural boosting of infrastructure in order to continue to develop telecom services.

Zambia's government has urged more focus on telecommunications in rural areas. (Image: Google/ukzambians.co.uk)

A parliamentary committee on communications in the East African country said it has called on the regulator, the Zambia Information Communication and Technology Authority (ZICTA) to move quicker in installing telecommunications towers in rural areas of the country.

The aim is to ensure that the country continues to move forward on developing the country’s telecom sector, especially in rural areas that have been largely left aside by the massive telecom boom on the continent and in the country.

ZICTA said it is set to install 144 towers in 118 chiefdoms with poor network signals in 2013.

“This will cost about ZMK 240 billion under the Universal Access and Service project,” it said in a statement to Times of Zambia.

Committee chairperson Kapembwa Simbao said “the authority should consider extending the installation of telecommunication towers to needy and outlying areas.”

Simbao said ZICTA’s “move to increase the number of ICT devices like computers in schools was essential but that the authority should target schools in remote areas.”